Plant diversity, form, and function Flashcards
What are the major groupings of plants?
Bryophytes (nonvascular) and vascular plants
bryophytes
nonvascular plants, no xylem and phloem, small, lack roots and leaves, do not make flowers, pollen, or seeds
Seedless vascular plants
Have vascular tissue (xylem and phloem), some have secondary growth (become trees like ferns), the do not make flowers, seeds, or pollen and reproduce with spores
Seed plants
Gymnosperms and angiosperms, make pollen and seeds for reproduction
Gymnosperm
“Naked seed” - include conifers (pine trees, junipers) and gnetophytes
Angiosperms
Flowering plants, monocots and eudicots
Monocot
Grasses, orchids, wheat, corn, etc.
Have single cotyledon when they sprout and vascular tissue is typically parallel in leaves
Eudicot
Most trees, roses, sunflowers (flowers made of smaller flowers), etc
Have two cotyledons when they sprout and vascular tissue is typically branching patterns in leaves
Evergreens
Keep leaves all year long (conifers, ferns, and tropical trees)
Deciduous
Shed leaves seasonally, depending on climate, (many temperate broad trees ex. Aspens)
What 4 things do most plants have?
Roots, shoots, leaves, vascular system
Why are different parts of the plant different shapes/ sizes?
To maximize efficiency
—> SHAPE MATTERS
Function of roots
Anchor plants, absorb nutrients, store energy
Root system
Taproot (central root that grows downward) and
lateral roots (grow off taproot/ forms taproot system)
Fibrous Roots
Where no one root is prominent (think clump of grass roots)
More common in monocots
Exceptions to “roots grow down into soil”
Floating plants (grow into water), Parasitic plants (grow into other plants), some wetland plants (can grow above ground to absorb Oxygen)
Phenotypic plasticity
They can respond to changing or different environments (less shallow roots in high water vs. more shallow roots in low water b/c competition)
Adventitious roots
Anchor stems to other plants or structures like walls (ex. vines)
Modified roots
Prop roots, aerial roots, pneumatophores (part of roots grow up into air to absorb oxygen), taproots modified into storage organs (carrots and beets)
How do some plants reproduce through their roots?
Asexually, producing a bunch of clones through root system
